As with many metals and gemstones, a little scratch can do wonders when it comes to figuring out if a pearl is real. Using the tip of a knife, create a tiny impression in the surface. A real pearl will yield a small amount of dust or powder, while coated beads will reveal the surface of the glass.
The surface of a pearl is soft and is easily damaged. Pearls set in rings and bracelets are more subject to scuffing and scratching than pearls set in brooches, earrings, necklaces or strands.
For example, diamond is only one number away, but it's many times harder than gems in the corundum family. Pearl is ranked 2.5 on the Mohs hardness scale, which means it's very soft and easily scratched or abraded.
Hold the pearls in your fingers, and gently rub them against each other. A true pearl will create friction with another due to the grainy, imperfect surface. Fakes, on the other hand, will easily glide past each other due to their artificial coatings. Take a close look at your hands after this test.
Pearls are organic gemstones that are vulnerable to acid, alkaline and extremes of humidity. To preserve your pearls' radiance, avoid letting them come into contact with cosmetics, hair spray, or perfume. Always put on your jewelry as a final touch, after applying make-up and styling hair.
Wetting pearls is never a good idea, as it begins to destroy the jewel. Pearl necklaces are damaged when they get wet, because the water damages both the thread and the pearl . When wet, the thread that holds the beads together begins to stretch and lengthen, so it quickly loses the desired shape.
Pearls are organically created, so they can be quite delicate. Please avoid any harsh product coming into contact with your jewellery. Cosmetics, moisturisers and perfume may damage the pearl and its jewellery setting. It's always best to wear your pearls last when getting ready, and take them off first.
Today, natural pearls are extremely rare. Only 1 in about 10,000 wild oysters will yield a pearl and of those, only a small percentage achieve the size, shape and colour desirable to the jewellery industry.
The value of a pearl can vary dramatically depending on many factors, such as its type, size, color, surface quality, and more. A wild pearl will be worth more than a cultured pearl. However, on average, a pearl's value ranges from $300 to $1500.
Gold Pearls
One of the largest and rarest pearls found around the world is Gold in color. They are Golden South Sea pearls, cultured in the Philippine Islands.
Genuine pearls are shinier than fake pearls. You can measure shine in luster, which is the intensity and softness of a pearl's surface, it generally has to do with how bright and clear a pearl looks. Natural pearls have more shine than artificial ones because they're made from natural materials.
The lip determines the pearl color. While the white pearls are also priced by jewelers, the gold pearl variety is the most coveted color. The gold South sea pearl's color can range from creamy white to deep gold, and the darker the color, the more expensive it becomes.
Real pearls wear out and age, what is visible in getting mat, cracking, peeling, chipping off, and finally scattering into a fine powder. The life of a natural pearl is estimated at about 100-150 years, but there are few specimens up to several hundred years.
As mentioned, pearls are ranked 2.5 on the Mohs Hardness Scale which means that a pearl is considered a soft gem and can easily be scratched.
Look for tiny irregularities
When you examine real pearls closely or under magnification, you'll notice tiny irregularities and ridges on each pearl's surface. In a strand of cultured pearls, you can always see very tiny differences between them, even when they are top quality and well matched.
Essentially the better a pearl scores for these 7 standards the higher in value it is and the more complex it was to produce. Some of the world's most expensive pearls are so notoriously difficult to successfully produce and harvest that they are 'rarer than gold'.
Freshwater pearls have no core and are made up entirely of mother-of-pearl – so 98% of these stones are not round but oval, buttoned, drop or baroque in shape. Freshwater pearls are cheaper because they are easier to extract, making sea pearls more valued.
How are cultured pearls identified? In contrast to natural pearls, cultured pearls have a thin nacre or “skin”. When held against a concentrated light source, cultured pearls appear to have a solid, rounded nucleus with a thin outer layer.
Never get pearls hot. Heat can destroy pearls and their settings.
Real pearls will display fluoresce under ultraviolet light, meaning they glow. Press a small UV flashlight over a pearl to see if it glows. If the pearl glows, it's likely a real pearl. An authentic pearl displays fluoresce under ultraviolet light because of the presence of natural organic compounds in its nacre.
For example, hairspray, perfume, acid from beverages, and even human sweat can damage pearls. Genuine pearls are of organic origin and pearl is relatively soft. Pearls can be abraded or scratched by careless handling or storage.
After wearing your pearl, you can simply clean it with a soft cloth which may be moistened with non-chlorinated water. We advise against coating your pearl with coconut oil or olive oil, as we have seen suggested, because this would only cause dust to stick to it.
Should You Wear Pearls Every Day? There's a straightforward answer to this question. It's really up to you and what you're comfortable with. If you're someone who takes very good care of their belongings and is cautious with how you handle them, then wearing your pearls every day shouldn't be a problem.
Nacre quality: Luster and nacre quality are closely related. If the nucleus is visible under the nacre, or if the pearl has a dull, chalky appearance, you can assume that the nacre is thin. This affects the luster as well as the durability of the pearl.